As Part Of $10.5 Million Proposal, Prospective Teachers Would Need At Least a B-Plus Grade Point Average

Gov.Dannel P. Malloyrolled out a $10.5 million proposal Tuesday aimed at improving the quality of Connecticut's teachers that includes tougher standards, financial incentives, professional development and a new teacher evaluation system.

Malloy's prescription for better teachers includes raising the bar for college students who want to become teachers: They will need a minimum grade point average of B-plus to get into a teacher preparation program. At present the minimum required GPA is B-minus.

Speaking at Central Connecticut State University, Malloy also called for $1 million in new financial incentives to recruit top college students with high grades and a commitment to working in high-needs schools. Successful college seniors graduating from teacher preparation programs would be eligible for $5,000 tuition-reimbursement grants, and graduates who accept positions in low-performing "priority" school districts could apply for $10,000 in student loan forgiveness.

"They must be the ones bending the curve on low achievement in our most challenging districts," Malloy said of these new teachers. "We must recruit the best."

The tuition reimbursement and financial incentives would be available to students coming from colleges and universities both in Connecticut and out of state.

Malloy's package also includes $2 million to bring nonprofit organizations into the state such as the National Academy for Advanced Teacher Education and New Leaders for New Schools. These organizations work closely with states and districts to attract and develop teachers and school leaders.

Robert Kennedy, president of the state's Board of Regents for Higher Education, said he heard repeatedly as he toured Connecticut's community college and state university campuses that incoming students are not prepared for the rigors of their freshman year in college.

He also said half of the teachers in Connecticut school classrooms are graduates of the state's four universities — Central, Southern, Western and Eastern.

While many of those teachers "are passionate about their craft and invested in students," Kennedy said, "we know we need to do more" to hold "accountable teacher programs and the students who want to be part of that."

He said "it just makes sense" to raise the minimum GPA required of students who want to enroll in teacher preparation programs to a B-plus.

"We want students who know how to learn," Kennedy said.

He said more "hands-on and classroom-based" learning is needed in teacher preparation programs.

Malloy, who will present his budget and State of the State address Wednesday, has announced an array of proposed education reforms in recent days.

Education Commissioner Stefan Pryor said: "The perception has been to date that Connecticut has not engaged in authentic and meaningful reform… We're not on the map in terms of school reform. The governor has ushered in a new era."

Pryor said the process of becoming an educator has been wrapped in "red tape, rather than rolling out the red carpet."

Pryor noted in an an e-mail that exceptions to the B-plus minimum average rule would be made for "exceptional candidates."

Raising the required GPA from B-minus to B-plus could disqualify a sizeable number of would-be teachers.

Mitchell Sakofs, dean of the School of Education & Professional Studies at CCSU, said that 52 percent of the students who got into the education preparation program in the past two years had GPAs of at least 3.3 — a B-plus.

He said 92 percent of the students who got into the program had at least a 3.0 or B average.

It's possible, Sakofs said, that the new requirement could lead to shortages of certain types of teachers already in demand. But if students know the grade threshold is higher, he added, they might work harder and earn the necessary grades.

Sakofs said he thinks requiring higher grades for prospective teachers would "net out as a modest benefit."